CTLA4-Ig Effectively Controls Clinical Deterioration and Immune Condition in a Murine Model of Foxp3 Deficiency

FOXP3 deficiency results in severe multisystem autoimmunity in both mice and humans, driven by the absence of functional regulatory T cells. Patients typically present with early and severe autoimmune polyendocrinopathy, dermatitis, and severe inflammation of the gut, leading to villous atrophy and ultimately malabsorption, wasting, and failure to thrive. In the absence of successful treatment, FOXP3-deficient patients usually die within the first 2 years of life. Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation provides a curative option but first requires adequate control over the inflammatory condition. Due to the rarity of the condition, no clinical trials have been conducted, with widely unstandardized therapeutic approaches. We sought to compare the efficacy of lead therapeutic candidates rapamycin, anti-CD4 antibody, and CTLA4-Ig in controlling the physiological and immunological manifestations of Foxp3 deficiency in mice.

We generated Foxp3-deficient mice and an appropriate clinical scoring system to enable direct comparison of lead therapeutic candidates rapamycin, nondepleting anti-CD4 antibody, and CTLA4-Ig.

We found distinct immunosuppressive profiles induced by each treatment, leading to unique protective combinations over distinct clinical manifestations. CTLA4-Ig provided superior breadth of protective outcomes, including highly efficient protection during the transplantation process.

These results highlight the mechanistic diversity of pathogenic pathways initiated by regulatory T cell loss and suggest CTLA4-Ig as a potentially superior therapeutic option for FOXP3-deficient patients.